HBO’s The Last of Us Series Wraps Filming

Production on HBO’s series adaptation of The Last of Us has wrapped, executive producer Craig Mazin has confirmed on social media. The Primetime Emmy-winning creator of Chernobyl revealed the news in the wee hours of the morning on Twitter, simply writing: “That’s a wrap!!!!!!!” Mazin’s announcement prompted plenty of replies from key creatives on the series. Actress Bella Ramsey, who plays Ellie in the series, tweeted a gif from the original game, one featuring her character saying “Pfft, I’m not even tired!” (which she says before promptly falling asleep), with game creator Neil Druckmann replying: “Is this like hitting alpha? Congrats!!! What a journey!” 

This week saw other news about The Last of Us TV series arrive as Druckmann took to the stage at Summer Games Fest not only to talk about the game side of the franchise but also the TV show. Druckmann confirmed that Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson, voice and motion capture actors for Joel and Ellie in the games, will appear in the TV series in substantial roles, something more than just a cameo.

View on X

“When Craig and I started working on the show almost one of our very first meetings we said Troy and Ashley have to be a part of it and we’re such fans of like the talent and helping us create Joel and Ellie. We felt like it was so important that they become part of the show and it wasn’t it has to be more than just like kind of like a wink to the camera and like a cameo. These are real roles that we’re keeping on the wraps for now.”

Druckmann also revealed a new photo from the series, showing off a sequence from a scene that hails from the episode that he directed, featuring Joel and Ellie hiding inside the museum in Boston.

“I think that really speaks to the kind of collaboration and trust that exists between Naughty Dog and HBO,” Druckman said about directing an episode of the series. “They invited me to direct one of the episodes…I really have to talk about Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey and not only directing them but seeing them do all the other episodes. They’ve thrown themselves at these roles for a whole year watching the nuance that they bring to these characters, their relationship on and off camera, I couldn’t help but think about Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson. It felt so similar to the chemistry those two actors had when we made the game. It really feels like this is going to be something special and I will say this will be the most authentic video game adaptation yet.”

An official release date for The Last of Us series has not been confirmed yet but a 2023 premiere seems likely as the series just wrapped up less than an a day ago.